Printer with pair of tape roll guide members having a recessed part for housing a pressing roller

Abstract

This disclosure discloses a printer comprising a roll storage part, a feeder, a printing head, a pair of guide members, a guide driving mechanism, a cover, a pressing roller, and a recessed part. The printing head is configured to perform desired printing on the print-receiving tape fed by a feeder. The pair of guide members are configured to determine a width-direction position of the print-receiving tape while sandwiching the stored roll. The guide driving mechanism is configured to make the pair of guide members move close to and away from each other by advancing and retreating in tandem in a width direction of the roll. The pressing roller is configured to contact the print-receiving tape near a feed-out position. The recessed part is configured to house at least a part of the pressing roller, provided to each position of the pair of guide members.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION[0001]The present application claims priority from Japanese Patent Application No. 2013-45766, which was filed on Mar. 7, 2013, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.BACKGROUND[0002]1. Field[0003]The present disclosure relates to a printer that produces a print label by performing desired printing on a print-receiving tape.[0004]2. Description of the Related Art[0005]There are known printers which produce print labels by performing desired printing on a print-receiving tape. Such a printer stores a roll around which is wound the print-receiving tape into a roll shape in a roll storage part, and performs desired printing on the print-receiving tape by printing means while feeding out the print-receiving tape from the roll by feeding means. The print-receiving tape on which printing has been thus performed is then discharged to the outside of the housing and, in such a state, the roll side is cut by cutting me...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009]It is therefore an object of the present disclosure to provide a printer capable of supporting a roll with diverse tape widths by guide members while stabilizing the feeding of the print-receiving tape by a pressing roller.

[0012]The printer of the present disclosure comprises a pressing roller rotatably provided on the cover. This pressing roller contacts the print-receiving tape fed out from the roll near the feed-out position, making it possible to impart tension to the print-receiving tape and suppress the looseness when the feeding is stopped. With this arrangement, the feeding of the tape is stabilized, making it possible to suppress a printing disturbance.

[0013]On the other hand, the printer comprises a pair of guide members in the roll storage part. These guide members advance and retreat in tandem in the width direction of the roll with respect to a reference position, making it possible to adjust the space in accordance with a roll with diverse tape widths.

[0015]Hence, according to the present disclosure, each of the guide members comprises a recessed part at a position corresponding to the pressing roller. This recessed part houses at least a part of the pressing roller, thereby making it possible to secure a wide adjustable range of the space between the guide members, even in a case where a relatively large roller width is set. Accordingly, it is possible to support a roll with diverse tape widths by the guide members while stabilizing the feeding of the print-receiving tape by the pressing roller.

[0016]Further, by thus providing a recessed part on each guide member, it is possible to extend the guide members up to the downstream side in the tape transport direction than the position where the pressing roller is provided while avoiding contact with the pressing roller. With this arrangement, it is possible to support the guide members near the tape feed-out position, thereby making it possible to increase the strength of the guide members. As a result, it is possible to stabilize and guide the print-receiving tape fed out from the roll.

Problems solved by technology

Nevertheless, according to the printer of the prior art, the print-receiving tape is repeatedly fed and stopped, thereby sometimes producing slack in the print-receiving tape near the feed-out position when the feeding is stopped due to the vibration of the apparatus itself, external impact, or the like.

In such a case, slackened winding may occur in the roll, making the feeding of the print-receiving tape become unstable when feeding is resumed, triggering a printing disturbance.

However, if the roller width of the pressing roller is set relatively small so that the pressing roller is not contacted when the space between the guide members is narrowed, the pressing roller cannot adequately press the print-receiving tape, resulting in the possibility that the feeding of the tape will become unstable.

On the other hand, while the feeding of the tape stabilizes when a large roller width is set, the space between the guide members cannot be set smaller than the roller width, thereby significantly restricting the adjustable range of the space between the guide members, making it no longer possible to support a roll with diverse tape widths.

In such a case, slackened winding may occur in the roll, making the feeding of the print-receiving tape become unstable when feeding is resumed, triggering a printing disturbance.

In such a configuration, if the roller width of the pressing roller is set relatively small so that the pressing roller is not contacted when the space between the guide members is narrowed, the pressing roller cannot adequately press the print-receiving tape, resulting in the possibility that the feeding of the tape will become unstable.

On the other hand, while the feeding of the tape stabilizes when a large roller width is set, the space between the guide members cannot be set smaller than the roller width, thereby significantly restricting the adjustable range of the space between the guide members, making it no longer possible to support a roll with diverse tape widths.

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